Fence post



Dec. 28, 1965 J. MOCARON 3,225,501

FENCE POST Filed Oct. 23, 1962 INVEN TOR.

Class/a4 BY #05 JrraAA/Egst United States Patent C 3,225,501 FENCE POST Joseph McCaron, 14133 Ballentine Place, Baldwin Park, Calif. Filed Oct. 23, 1962, Ser. No. 232,527 3 Claims. (Cl. 52298) This invention relates to fence construction and more particularly to an improved method of constructing the upright posts upon which various types of fencing material are mounted.

In various types of fence construction, the method of mounting the vertical posts upon which the fencing material such as wire mesh is mounted is unsatisfactory, particularly in that for fences which are subject to damage and require removal and replacement of sections, it is not possible in the present state of the art to easily repair or replace the section of the fence. For example, in freeway construction cyclone type wire fence is placed in the divider strip such that the fence separates the traffic moving in the opposite directions. The fence is typically reinforced with steel cable such that it is impossible for a car travelling one direction to jump the divider into oncoming trafiic moving in the opposite direction. Such fences are also damaged by cars which are involved in accidents or go out of control and strike the fence in the divider. When struck, such fences are severely damaged and sections thereof must be replaced. In the present state of the art, the upright posts upon which the steel wire fencing material is placed are set in concrete in the divider strip and in order to remove a post it is necessary to dig out the post and reinsert it in concrete when it is replaced.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a fence construction in which the upright support posts may be removably placed in the ground.

It is another object of the present invention to provide such a removably placed upright support post which cannot be removed so long as the fencing material remains on the post.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improved fence construction by means of which the vertical upright supporting the fencing material can be easily and quickly inserted into a permanently placed fixture in the ground or supporting surface.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide such a fence construction which is simple to fabricate and economical to manufacture.

The present invention is an improved fence post construction which includes a tubular support member adapted to be positioned beneath the support surface with an open upper end proximate to the support or ground surface level. A first transverse plate is extended across the open upper end. The plate has an opening therethrough which opening is non-circular in configuration. The fence post is of suflicient length to extend the required distance above the ground surface and is formed with a lower end which is non-circular and of a configuration mateable in one position of rotation with the opening through the transverse plate such that it is adapted to be inserted through the transverse plate in one position of rotation only. Means are provided within the tubular member below the upper transverse plate to form a bearing surface against the inserted fence post such that it is retained in an upright position. Preferably, such bearing means is a second transverse plate positioned within the tubular member and spaced downwardly from the first transverse member. The second plate has an opening therethrough similar in configuration to the opening through the first plate but at a different position of rotation with respect thereto.

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In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a view in elevation of a presently preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged view partially in section of the embodiment of the present invention as shown in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a view in section taken along line 3-3 of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 4 is a view in section taken along line 4--4 of FIGURE 2; and,

FIGURE 5 is a partial view of an alternative embodiment of a fence post in accordance with the present invention.

Referring now to the drawings, there are shown in FIGURE 1-4 the presently preferred embodiment of the present invention in which the support member utilized is a length of steel tubing 11 which is circular in cross section with feet 12 welded or otherwise aflixed proximate the lower end thereof in order to firmly anchor the support member 11 in concrete. The member 11 has a bottom closure plate 14 and is embedded in concrete 15 with the upper end 16 of the support member proximate to the upper surface 17 of the concrete which corresponds approximately with the surface of the ground 18. A first transverse plate 20 as shown in FIGURES 2 and 4 is afiixed across the upper open end 16 of the tubular support member. The transverse plate 20 is typically a steel plate welded at the upper end 16 of the support member 11. The upper support plate defines an opening 21 therethrough which is of non-circular configuration. In the present embodiment, the opening 21 is of a configuration which defines a circular portion 22 having a diameter somewhat greater than the diameter of the post 25 to be inserted therein with protrusions 23 extending along one diameter of the circular transverse plate beyond the diameter of the circular portion of the opening 21. The width of the protrusions 23 are sufiicient to allow the insertion of the fence post 25 as described hereinafter.

A second transverse plate 26 is positioned within the tubular member 11 at a position longitudinally spaced from the first transverse plate 20. The second transverse plate 26 is similar in configuration to the first transverse plate and defines an opening therethrough similar to that through the first plate, but with the corresponding protrusions 33 corresponding to the protrusions 23 in the opening through the first plate oriented at a position rotated from those of the first plate with respect to the longitudinal axis of the member 11.

The fence post 25 in this embodiment is of circular cross section, but with a flattened end 30 which extends from the lower end surface 31 upward along the length of the post 25. Such end configuration is typically formed by flattening the post from the circular configuration thereby causing it to form a somewhat elliptical or spade-shaped form with a width less than the width of the protrusions 23 and 33 extending from the openings through the first and second transverse plates. The protrusions and the flattened portion of the fence post 25 are such that the post is insertable through the protrusions when it is in the proper position of rotation. It may thus be seen that the length of the flattened portion of the fence post is less than the distance between the first and second transverse plates and is less than the distance of the second transverse plate from the lower end of the tubular member 11. Thus, the fence post is rotated until the flattened portion 30 of the post 25 is aligned with the protrusions in the opening 21 through the first transverse plate and inserted downward through the transverse plate. The fence post is then rotated through 90 such that the fiat portions 30 of the post is then aligned with the opening through the second transverse plate and is insertable therethrough into engagement with the lower end of the tubular member 11. The fence post is again rotated and can thus not be removed from the tubular member without rotation with respect thereto.

The fencing material 40, such as interwoven steel wire known as cyclone fencing, is afiixed to the fence post and it can be seen that the post cannot be removed so long as the fencing material is attached thereto since the post cannot be rotated. Accordingly, so long as the fence post is prevented from rotating by its attachment to the fencing material, it cannot be removed from the tubular member 11 nor substantially moved vertically with respect thereto. When it is necessary to replace a section of the fence including the upright posts, it is necessary only to detach the fencing material from the upright, rotate the upright, remove it from the support and insert another similarly shaped post into the support member.

There is shown in FIGURE 5 an alternative embodiment of the fence post 25 in which a channel iron or I-beam 41 of the type sometimes used for fence posts is employed. When this type of material is utilized, a pin 42 is aifixed through the web 43 of the I-beam to provide the locking members for this type of post in place of the flattened portion of the circular fence post described in connection with the presently preferred embodiment.

It will be understood from the foregoing that various embodiments and modifications of the present invention can be employed without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

What is claimed is:

1. An improved fence construction comprising a support member having an open upper end and a closed lower end, an elongate fence post comprising an upper portion, and a lower end having a non-circular cross section with a major transverse axis dimension larger than the largest transverse axis dimension of said upper portion, first and second transverse plates across the support member each having opening means therethrough having a first portion with a major axis dimension for receiving the major transverse axis dimension of said fence post lower end and a second portion for receiving the fence post upper portion, said first portion major axes of said opening means being non-aligned and said second portions of said opening means being aligned, said first plate being proximate the upper end of said support member and said second plate being below said first plate and above said closed end of said support member a distance at least equal to the length of the end portion of said fence post, whereby said fence post lower end may be passed through said first plate first portion, then axially rotated into alignment with the second plate first portion, then passed through the second plate first portion, and then again axially rotated, so that the end portion is between said closed lower end and said second plate, and the second portions of said first and second plate opening means receive the fence post upper portion.

2. The fence construction of claim 1, said upper portion of said fence post being circular in cross section.

3. The fence construction of claim 1, the upper portion of said fence post being an I-beam.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 306,657 10/1884 Stephen 52297 316,599 4/1885 Brinley et al. 52283 X 362,716 5/1887 Broughton 52298 1,033,187 7/ 1912 Metzger 287103 X 1,297,838 3/1919 Haines 25632 3,039,695 6/1962 Harmsen 52704 X FOREIGN PATENTS 489,963 1/1953 Canada. 511,249 8/ 1939 Great Britain.

FRANK L. ABBOTT, Primary Examiner.

HENRY C. SUTHERLAND, BENJAMIN BENDETT,

Examiners. 

1. AN IMPROVED FENCE CONSTRUCTION COMPRISING A SUPPORT MEMBER HAVING AN OPEN UPPER END AND A CLOSED LOWER END, AN ELONGATE FENCE POST COMPRISING AN UPPER PORTION, AND A LOWER END HAVING A NON-CIRCULAR CROSS SECTION WITH A MAJOR TRANSVERSE AXIS DIMENSION LARGER THAN THE LARGEST TRANSVERSE AXIS DIMENSION OF SAID UPPER PORTION, FIRST AND SECOND TRANSVERSE PLATES ACROSS THE SUPPORT MEMBER EACH HAVING OPENING MEANS THERETHROUGH HAVING A FIRST PORTION WITH A MAJOR AXIS DIMENSION FOR RECEIVING THE MAJOR TRANSVERSE AXIS DIMENSION OF SAID FENCE POST LOWER END AND A SECOND PORTION FOR RECEIVING THE FENCE POST UPPER PORTION, SAID FIRST PORTION MAJOR AXES OF SAID OPENING MEANS BEING NON-ALIGNED AND SAID SECOND PORTIONS OF SAID OPENING MEANS BEING ALIGNED, SAID FIRST PLATE BEING PROXIMATE THE UPPER END OF SAID SUPPORT MEMBER AND SAID SECOND PLATE BEING BELOW SAID FIRST PLATE AND ABOVE SAID CLOSED END OF SAID SUPPORT MEMBER A DISTANCE AT LEAST EQUAL TO THE LENGTH OF THE END PORTION OF SAID FENCE POST, WHEREBY SAID FENCE POST LOWER END MAY BE PASSED THROUGH SAID FIRST PLANE FIRST PORTIN, THEN AXIALLY ROTATED INTO ALIGNMENT WITH THE SECOND PLATE FIRST PORTION, THEN PASSED THROUGH THE SECOND PLATE FIRST PORTION, AND THEN AGAIN AXIALLY ROTATED, SO THAT THE END PORTION IS BETWEEN SAID CLOSED LOWER END AND SAID SECOND PLATE, AND THE SECOND PORTIONS OF SAID FIRST AND SECOND PLATE OPENING MEANS RECEIVE THE FENCE POST UPPER PORTION. 